Boosting Sales or Wasting Food? Uncovering the Impact of In-Store Food Promotions on Household Waste – Insights from Scientific Reports

We recently conducted a field experiment in collaboration with eight supermarkets in Sweden. The goal? To understand how different shopping promotions affect what people buy and, ultimately, food waste. In simple terms, we wanted to figure out if certain marketing tactics, like buy two for a discount, lead to more purchases and more wasted food.

We focused on fresh vegetables, especially cucumbers and broccoli. Why? About half of all food waste comes from fruits and vegetables, and these two are among the most wasted items in Swedish households. During our two-week study, we gathered data on about 43,000 vegetable units sold. We tested four different promotional strategies:

• Multi-Unit Promotion: Buy two cucumbers for a set price (e.g., “2 for 30 kr”).
• Single-Unit Discount: Buy one cucumber for half the price (e.g., “1 for 15 kr”).
• Salience: Highlighting the single-unit price using larger text.
• Prompt: A cheeky reminder sticker saying, “I’m happy to come home with you if you will eat me.”

These tactics were carefully designed to see how they influenced shopping behavior. The results showed that multi-unit promotions led to a 19.5% increase in sales compared to single-unit discounts. Interestingly, both the Salience and Prompt conditions reduced sales by around 10% compared to the multi-unit offer, suggesting that these reminders made shoppers think twice about their purchases.

Food waste is a pressing issue, and recent studies highlight its growing concern. In Sweden, nearly a third of all food is thrown away. This has brought significant attention to consumer habits and marketing influences. A survey indicated that 20% of people felt pressured by supermarket promotions to buy more than they needed. This aligns with findings from our study, where the multi-unit offers encouraged excess purchasing and, consequently, food waste.

In our follow-up survey, 12% of shoppers in the multi-unit condition admitted they didn’t consume all their food. Only those in the single-unit condition reported finishing everything they bought. This further reinforces the idea that larger promotions can lead to wasted food, which might contradict retailer goals of increasing sales.

Demographics played a role, too. Larger households tended to buy more but also reported higher food waste. Interestingly, consumers’ beliefs about marketing influences didn’t correlate with actual shopping behavior, suggesting that many are unaware of how promotions impact their choices.

In conclusion, while multi-unit offers can boost sales, they can also contribute to food waste. Our research calls for a balance between encouraging purchases and promoting sustainable shopping behaviors. These insights could help retailers rethink their strategies to support both sales goals and consumers’ needs for responsible consumption.

For those interested in a deeper dive, studies on consumer behavior and marketing strategies, such as this report from the FAO, showcase the broader implications of food waste and its impact on sustainability.

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Climate change,Environmental social sciences,Human behaviour,Psychology,Science,Humanities and Social Sciences,multidisciplinary